which led to some fun experiments

Experiments

Inspired by Gerhard Richter’s ‘Cage 1-6’ I decided to paint while listening to orchestral, post-classical and instrumental music. The watercolours are not a direct reinterpretation of Richters works, he made conscious decisions which he has to “process first in my (his) mind before I (he) can continue”. Rather it’s closer to what he says about ‘chance playing a definitive role in abstract painting’ as well as the concept of Synaesthesia.

I shall attach the watercolours below each piece of music it represents.

It was surprising to see that certain colours emerged through the high and low dynamics of the music even if I was painting with the same music twice. Both the watercolours above were painted while listening to ‘Roses’ by Jean-Michel Blais, a post classical pianist and composer. The music starts out serene, as if it was rippling still water, which is represented in the blue strokes. Then the music starts to develop depth and lows, represented by the thick purple and green brushstrokes. As the pace of the pianist increases, I start making these ‘marks’ which seem like a language in itself, a language I’ve never seen before. These ‘marks’ come up when painting other pieces of instrumental music as well, as you shall see below. Finally, when the music reached its peak, it seemed like a day break or a sign of hope, which may be the reason I made the orange and yellow strokes. In both the paintings I started off with shades of blue leading to purple and green and then finally ending with orange and yellow, even though they were made separately, at different times, through unconscious decisions.

The piece of music starts low, maybe setting a scene, you feel anticipation, represented by the frame made in reds and blues. Soon after, the ‘mark’ making language appears. Suddenly, the pace quickens, I end up using the yellows and reds to show the fire, it felt as if a fire had enveloped a forest or a rural village and the living were trying to escape it, through a procession of small and majestic animals. I try to paint the anticipation and tragedy, the quick strokes of blues and the numb ash greens are representative of that.

Some quotes in the comments section of the video, which I found while writing this post, captured some of what I felt while painting.

“I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.” – Alexander the Great

“The child who is not embraced by his village will burn it down to feel its warmth” -African Proverb